Headfirst Back Into Hell
by Jasmine2
Summary: Slightly AU. Set after NFA. Angel is living a normal human life when events occur that thrust him back into the world of demons and evil lawyers. Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns all Angel characters. There are a few original characters and they are mine.
1. Prologue

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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PROLOGUE

It had been three years since the final battle with Wolfram & Hart had occurred and things had calmed down in Los Angeles greatly. In fact, it seemed that there was little to no demonic activity all over the world. With the fall of Wolfram & Hart in LA, the final closing of the hellmouth in Sunnydale, and a few other apocalyptic happenings throughout the world that the slayers stopped, just about all, demonic activity had come to a standstill. No one really knew exactly why but all were very grateful for it. Another thing they were all grateful for was the fact that, after the battle, Angel and Spike had both become human. They retained all of their speed, strength and senses from when they were vampires, but now they were human just like everyone else. Most of the slayers resided in either Italy or around areas where a hellmouth was present, just in case. Buffy, Faith, Willow, Xander, Dawn, Giles and Kennedy all were in Italy where the new Watcher's Council had been established.

They had a new member of their team though. Spike had left LA after the final battle and went to find Buffy in Italy. Find her he did. She was shocked to see him, as was everybody else. He explained everything that had happened and how Wes, Cordelia and Fred had been killed. He also explained about Lorne and Lindsay McDonald and all the creatures they had to fight in the end. Spike had been surprised that he, Angel, Gunn and Connor had all survived that last battle. Having Illyria there had helped a lot. Angel and Connor had stayed in LA but went their separate ways. Connor went back to his new family and had been going to UCLA for two years and was majoring in criminal justice. He had a girlfriend that he had been seeing for a couple of years and he had a whole group of actual friends; all of whom knew absolutely nothing about his life with Angel or Angel Investigations. Gunn had returned to his old stomping grounds but had found nothing there for him. His old gang had left and there was nothing but an empty building. So he left LA and moved across country to New York City where he became a narcotics cop. Angel had stayed in the Hyperion Hotel and kept Angel Investigations alive. His cases were more normal now and he had actually become a legitimate detective by getting his license. He worked along side Kate Lockley a couple of times and they had actually become friends again. He rarely talked to Connor, Spike, Gunn or any one else for that matter. None of them really did. Connor and Gunn never communicated any more, not even via email. And Spike had his new life in Italy with Buffy. They had started dating a few months after he had come back and a year and a half later they were engaged and married. Spike and Buffy invited Angel, Gunn and Connor but none had shown up. After that, they had drifted apart indefinitely.

Angel also had a new life. Aside from turning A.I. into a more human oriented detective agency, he too had found a girl. A southern woman named Sara who already had a child of her own from a previous marriage, a young girl named Emily. They had started dating two years after the group had separated and they knew absolutely nothing of Angel's life before Wolfram & Hart. He had made up a solid story about his life, travels and family and everyone believed him. The only one who knew the truth any more was Kate and Angel. Angel liked the lie that he lived and was planning on continuing that lie for the rest of his life. He was even planning on marrying Sara.

The only thing that he hoped for was that nothing would change (drastically) and Sara would never have to know what he used to be. But, of course, the world never stays the same.

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	2. The Case

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER ONE

**Los Angeles**

Angel awoke to the sound of his alarm clock beeping. It was 7:00am and it was time to get up and open the agency. He groaned, hit the off button and rolled back over to go back to sleep. However, that didn't happen. Sara had also woken up to the alarm clock and nudged him and pushed him until he got up. Sara worked in a restaurant as the head chef and she had to be up at 7am also. So there was no way that she was going to let Angel sleep in if she couldn't. Angel groaned again, looked at her, sighed and got out of bed. Sara and Emily had moved in with Angel a few months earlier and all were loving it. The hotel was closer to the high school Emily went to so she no longer had to take the bus to get there. Her mom would drop her off in the morning and she would get a ride home from a friend at the end of the day. Emily liked Angel and hoped that he would become her new dad some day.

Angel showered and got dressed and went downstairs where Sara and Emily were already dressed and ready to go for the day.

"Good morning." Angel said to the two women.

"Good morning." They answered back in unison.

"So, Emily, are you excited to give your speech today?" Angel asked her.

"I wouldn't say excited, but I am definitely ready for it. I mean, come on, a speech on how to make a cake. Not exactly the hardest thing to talk about." Emily said. Emily was taking a speech class in her high school and they had to give a speech on how to make, or do, something. So, she picked baking a cake. One of the things she enjoyed doing the most.

"Well, Emily, its time to go. I will see you after work Angel. Have a good day and I hope a case comes your way today." Sara walked over to Angel and gave him a kiss and a hug goodbye. Angel gave a wave to Emily as she walked out the door and smiled at them both as they left.

Angel hadn't had a case in a few weeks but the last one had been very big and had brought in a lot of money. Not like he was concerned about money. Due to his dealings in his "past life" he was financially set for the rest of his life. But, he still had to keep up pretenses. When Sara had asked how he bought a hotel, he had told her that they were practically giving away the land and the building because it was so old and run down. He had snatched the opportunity saying that he didn't want to see a part of LA's history be torn down by the city. She had believed him, of course, and there had been no questions about it since then.

As Angel sat alone in his office, he unlocked a drawer in his desk and pulled out a photo album that his new friends didn't even know existed. It was a set of pictures of the old gang. He stopped at a picture of Cordy and sighed. He missed her so much and hated himself every minute of every day for not telling her that he loved her. He missed all of his old friends but knew they probably wanted nothing to do with him. He never let his emotions show because he didn't want Sara to know about them and that particular part of his life. He figured that he was never going to be a vampire again, so why bother telling her about things like that. He was brought back to reality by the sound of his phone ringing. He put the album away, locked the door and answered the phone.

"You've reached Angel Investigations, how may I help you?" Angel answered.

"Angel, its me, Kate. I, uh, I think I need to come to the hotel right away. I have this new case that I was given just this morning and, its, well, its pretty disturbing Angel." Kate told Angel clearly upset and she even sounded a little irritated.

"Kate what's wrong? What's the case?" Angel asked trying to get some information out of her.

"Look, Angel, I am not going to tell you over the phone but its something you really need to see. And a case I really think you should work on with me." Kate said not giving a bit of information away to him.

Angel could tell that something was definitely not right and that this was something that had to be dealt with as soon as possible.

"Ok Kate. Come over and bring all the reports and photos you have. We will go over this and figure it out and catch the bad guy. As always." Angel told her.

"Well, Angel, that's reason for the importance of all of this. I already know who the killer is."

"Who?"

After a bit of a pause with the only sound being the sound of Kate's car being started and put in gear in the background, Kate answered him. "Angel, its Penn."

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	3. Penn

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER TWO

Angel almost dropped the phone onto his desk. His face went pale and he thought his heart had just stopped beating.

"Angel, I have to hang up because I am driving. I will be there in twenty minutes. And Angel, let me just say, that I hope to God that I am wrong and this is just some sick copycat. But everything about this murder points to him. I will see you soon Angel. Bye." And with that Kate hung up the phone, turned on the lights and sirens that were built into her car and sped towards Angel's.

She knew that Sara would be at the restaurant and Emily would be in school so there was no need to worry about either of them finding out anything about the true matter of this case. The case had been given to her due to the nature of the murder. The body had been found in a back alley with two puncture wounds to the neck and a Christian cross carved into the body's left cheek. They didn't give her the case because of its weirdness, but because Kate had already handled a case with this exact same MO. And, because of that, the department figured that Kate would be able to catch this killer quicker than anybody. Kate had regained her respect in the department after years of being criticized as being crazy and delusional. She told the department that she needed time off because she had been going through a very hard time because of the death of her father and had fallen into a depression she didn't want to admit. They gave her the time, made her go to a therapist and she was now back on the force.

As Angel waited for Kate to arrive, all he could do was pace in the lobby. He couldn't believe what he had just been told. Kate thought Penn was alive. Angel knew that he couldn't be because he had seen Kate run him through with a 2x4 years ago and had felt him turn to dust behind him. He knew that the only way that Penn could be back was due to interference from someone like Wolfram & Hart. But he also knew that W & H had been taken down. As he thought about things he wondered what he really knew any more. He never went on any patrols any more because he thought they were fruitless. He had drifted away from knowing the things that were happening in the demonic underworld. He wanted nothing more to do with that life and was going to do everything to stay out of it. But this news had thrust him back into that world quicker than he thought possible. He hoped that Kate was wrong. He hoped that it was, indeed, just a copycat killer who had found out about the particulars of those murders that had happened years ago. He hoped that he would not have to look Penn in the eyes and see that disappointment and hatred that he had seen all those years ago. He hoped he wouldn't have to kill him, again.

The sound of the door opening brought Angel out of his thoughts and made him jump a little.

"Jumpy I see. I don't blame you." Kate said as she closed the door behind her and looked around the hotel.

"Just a little. My mind has kind of been elsewhere ever since you called." Angel said feeling very guilty at the moment for some reason.

"Angel, look, I hate to do this but on the way over I got a call from my boss saying that he wanted me to brief the team he had set up to work on this case, as well as the chief himself so I have to go. But here is a copy of all of the photos and all of the reports. Look them over and tell me what you think. I will be back later on tonight to go over it with you. If you don't want to meet here I would certainly understand and you know Sara would too."

"No, that's ok. Just come over here at around 8pm and we will go over all of this. I will look it over and try to find any differences in this killing and the ones that Penn committed. We will find whoever is doing this and we will stop him."

"I didn't bring the old case files because I figured you didn't need them. But if you want them I can have them faxed over."

"I don't need them. I know the way Penn used to…be. I don't need the files. But thanks. See you tonight Kate and please, be careful."

Kate said goodbye and walked out the door. Angel didn't even watch her go. He just sat down on the couch and put the file on the table. He hesitantly opened it up and started going over what was inside of it. After a few hours of going over and over everything that Kate had given him, the only conclusion he could come to was that his prodigal son was back in LA some how. There were absolutely no differences in this murder and the ones Penn always used to do. Angel knew that if this was, in fact, Penn as he thought it was, Penn was only doing this to draw Angel and Kate out. They would both have to be very very careful until this matter was resolved.

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	4. They're Back

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER THREE

Angel honestly didn't know what to do. He didn't want Kate to get hurt and, of course, he didn't want to die either. But what he was really concerned about was Sara and Emily. He had taken down the sanctuary spell a few months after W & H had been defeated. He hadn't seen a use for it any more. But now there was no protection for them. Taking down sanctuary was easy, but putting it up was the difficult part. When it was first put up it had taken hours for Lorne to get it up and running properly. Angel knew that he would not be able to do it alone and Kate would have no idea what she was doing. Angel didn't even know if he had it written down anywhere. He was now kicking himself for taking it down and, in turn, letting his guard down.

Angel hadn't realized how much time had gone by until Sara and Emily walked through the door. Angel jumped a little again but was happy to see that they were safe.

"Hey you two, how was your day?" Angel asked trying to keep things normal as possible.

"It was ok. Melinda wasn't in school today so mom came and picked me up on her way home from work. And, because Mel wasn't there, it was a boring day." Emily told him throwing her backpack down near the stairs. Melinda was her best friend and in almost all of her classes. She was also Emily's ride home at the end of the day.

"Oh stop being so dramatic Emily. You don't need Melinda there to have a good day in school." Her mother said to her.

"Do you know why Melinda wasn't in school today?" Angel asked. He was being overly paranoid knowing that the best way to get to himself and Kate was to go through their friends.

"She had a wedding to go to this weekend and her family isn't getting back until late tonight. So she wasn't there. She should be in school tomorrow unless she talks her parents into letting her stay home to rest." Emily informed him.

"Oh ok."

Emily walked into the kitchen to get a snack and then took her backpack upstairs to her room to start her homework.

"Angel, is everything ok?" Sara asked him. She could tell that he was very tense and on edge but she didn't know why.

"Yes, well…I don't know. Kate just got this new case that she wants me to help her with and it's a pretty bad one. Really disturbing. We think it might be a copycat killer." Angel told her. He couldn't tell her anything more about the case because he didn't want her to continue to ask questions.

"Oh my. I am sorry sweetie. You finally get a case and it's not even an easy one."

"My cases are never easy Sara. But this one…I worked a case like this before and it didn't exactly turn out the way we wanted it to."

"I'm sorry." Sara said putting her hand on Angel's shoulder trying to comfort him.

There was a long moment of silence between the two. They just both sat there, not saying a word to each other.

"So," Angel said, "how was your day today?"

"It was good. We had a lot of people for the lunch crowd. We also started preparing for this banquet we are doing tomorrow for this new company that just came into town. We aren't supposed to be telling people about it because I guess the company wants to surprise every one else and take the city by storm. Or something like that. That was what we were told. But apparently these people are pretty important." Sara said.

Angel could tell that she wanted to tell him more so he simply asked her who the new company was.

"Ok, you didn't hear this from me; mainly because I could get into a bit of trouble. It's a law firm called Wolfram & Hart. Apparently, this law firm had been in LA before and fell on some pretty hard times. Lost a lot of its employees and it building collapsed due to an earthquake a few years ago. But they rebuilt the building on a different location than the original one and are going to announce their arrival sometime later on this week."

The case Kate and Angel were working popped back into his head and he knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Penn was also back; and it was because of Wolfram & Hart's return.

"They already have." Angel whispered to him self.

"They already have what?" Sara asked him. She was slightly concerned by the way he was acting.

"Announced themselves to the world." Angel said.

He got up and started pacing in the lobby again. He didn't know what to do. He thought of Connor. Going to UCLA and probably completely unaware of W & H's return. He thought of trying to get a hold of him and warning him. But he wasn't sure if Connor would even answer a call from him, let alone believe him. Then he thought of Gunn and Spike, safe in NY and Italy.

"Angel are you ok?" Sara asked getting up. "What's going on?"

"I have to call Kate. Can you go upstairs and get Emily, we all need to talk." Angel asked her.

"Sure." Sara went upstairs to get Emily like Angel asked. She was very concerned at this moment. She had never seen Angel act this way about any case he was working on. He was always concerned for Sara's and Emily's safety but this one seemed to have him more scared than she had ever seen him before.

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	5. Jasmine

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER FOUR

Angel called Kate hoping she would answer.

"Hello?" Kate said.

"Kate! Its me, Angel. Look, we have a huge problem. I need you down here immediately." Angel said urgently.

"Is it about the case?" She asked already packing up her stuff.

"Well, kind of. It's the reason for the killer being here. And that reason is a very bad thing. Just please come here. And Kate, be very careful. Watch your back the entire way here."

"Angel what's going on?" Kate asked very worried now.

"Wolfram and Hart is back."

Angel heard her gasp a little bit and he knew that she completely understood.

"I will be there as soon as I can. And Angel, you be careful!" With that Kate hung up the phone, grabbed her stuff and ran out the doors of the police station. She knew all about Wolfram & Hart and what they were capable of. Angel had told her about how they had brought Darla back and she knew that they had done it again with Penn. They only thing that she couldn't figure out at the moment was why Penn? There were much more dangerous vampires and demons they could have brought forth but they brought him back. Why? She would have to ask Angel when she got there.

Back at the hotel, Sara and Emily were coming down there stairs. They were both very confused as to why Angel was acting the way that he was. He was usually so calm and collected but now they could tell that he was scared, worried and even seemed a little bit pissed off. But they didn't know why. They both hoped that he would explain everything to them.

"Sara, Emily. Sit please." Angel asked them.

"Angel, what's going on?" Emily asked as her and her mother sat down across from Angel.

"Well, you both know that I have this new case that I am working on with Kate right?"

"Yes." They both said.

"Well, this is a particularly dangerous case and we just found out some new information that has made the situation even more dangerous. And, well, I think it would be best if you two…well…weren't in LA right now."

"What!" Sara practically yelled. "What do you mean it would be best if we weren't here right now?"

"Sara, please calm down. I know that you have your job here and Emily is still in the middle of school, but with this new case I think it is just too dangerous for the two of you to be here." Angel tried to explain staying as calm as he possibly could.

"Angel, now you listen to me. I understand that you are dealing with what seems to be a particularly nasty killer, but that does not mean that me and Emily have to pack up and go. You will always have cases that are going to be dangerous and horrible. But you can't just send us away until it's over. That is just not going to happen. We have lives here and we can't just put them on hold because of your job." Sara said actually yelling this time. She was very upset and rightfully so.

Angel sighed knowing that she was absolutely right. "You're right, I'm sorry. I never should have suggested that. Its just, I have dealt with this guy before and he is not exactly my best friend in the world. I'm just afraid that he will try and hurt you two just to get back at me."

Angel put his head down in his hands and sighed a deep sigh. Sara reached across the table and touched his shoulder comfortingly.

"Angel, I understand why you suggested it. You are scared for us. But me and Emily will be just fine. I promise you." Sara said to him.

"Yea Angel. I know you will catch this guy and give him his just punishment. But, other than knowing this guy, what is it about this case that has you so wigged out?" Emily asked.

But before Angel even had time to answer, the door opened and a young woman walked in. She was about 5'2", had short, dark brown hair and fair skin. She was wearing a pair of tight, denim jeans, black boots, a navy spaghetti-strap shirt, and a black leather coat. A silver bracelet peeked out of her jacket on her left wrist. Her nails were painted a dark red and she had a very commanding demeanor about her. All three of them turned and looked at her wondering just who she was. Angel had stood up and was staring at her with his mouth hanging open a little as if he had seen a ghost. He simply could not believe who was standing in the entrance of his hotel.

The woman just giggled a little and stepped down the steps into the lobby and looked up at Angel.

"A little fashion advice Angel, mouth looks better closed." She said very matter-of-factly.

Angel shook him self and took a few steps toward her, putting him slightly between her and Sara and Emily.

"I'm sorry, but, who are you?" Sara asked noticing that Angel didn't seem like he was going to be saying something any time soon.

"I am terribly sorry. Where are my manners? My name is Jasmine." She said to Sara.

"What are you doing here?" Angel asked still very shocked.

"I heard about what was going on here and knew that your old crew probably wouldn't be coming any time soon, so, here I am." Jasmine said.

"What do you mean, '[you] heard about what was going on here'?" Emily asked.

"What Angel didn't tell you?" Jasmine said a little confused. She looked at Angel wondering why he wouldn't have said anything. Jasmine knew that he was human now but she figured that he still dealt with demons.

"Tell us what?" Sara asked.

"Its nothing." Angel said. "They don't have to know."

"Um, Angel, I think we do." Sara said. "Because for some reason I think what she is talking about has to do with you wanting me and Emily to leave LA."

"What." Jasmine said. "You were going to have them skip town and you weren't even going to tell the why. That's jacked up Angel."

"Ok, Angel. You are going to tell us what the hell is going on, who this woman is and why you wanted us to leave so badly." Sara said, her tone leaving no room for discussion.

Angel glared at Jasmine, sighed and then sat down.

"Ok, I will tell you. First I will start with who she is." Angel said pointing to Jasmine. "Her name is Jasmine. We have known each other for a very very long time. We actually grew up in the same town in Ireland. We traveled together for quite some time and then, due to events that occurred, we, along with the rest of the people that we were with, all split up. As for what is going on and why I am scared for you too. The killer that me and Kate are chasing, his name is Penn. Me and Kate have gone after this man before and he is one of the most dangerous people I know. He will come after you and Emily just because he can and he knows that it would be the best way to come after me. But that was not the main reason. The main reason is because of Wolfram and Hart. If they are back in town that could only mean that things are going to get really bad around here very quickly and I didn't want the two of you caught in the crossfire. They will come after me with a terrible vengeance."

"Wait," Sara interrupted, "why would a law firm want revenge on you?"

"Because, I am the one that took them down. Me and other people that used to work for AI a long time ago are the reason that they weren't here for a couple of years. Their building didn't come crashing down because of an earthquake. Me and my team blew it back to hell where it belongs. We took them down because they were unleashing very bad things into LA."

"Ok, I am officially confused." Emily said.

At that moment, Kate walked in. She noticed the new person that was standing beside where Angel, Sara and Emily stood and wondered who she was.

"Hey Angel. What's going on?" She asked.

"I am explaining to Sara and Emily our current situation." He said.

"Oh ok." Kate looked over to Jasmine and asked, "who is she?"

"Her name's Jasmine." Angel said dropping his head a little.

"Ok. Angel, I get it. You aren't going to tell these woman the complete truth and I get that. Am fine with it actually because personally I don't care. But Wolfram & Hart really aren't the main problem right now. And Penn definitely isn't either." Jasmine said laughing a little.

"You know who Penn is?" Kate asked taking a step away from Jasmine.

"Of course I do. Penn was there when Angel came back to Ireland for me." Jasmine said smiling at Angel.

Kate's eyes shot to Angel and she started to slowly back up towards the door. "Angel, what the hell is going on?" Kate said very scared.

"Kate its ok. She won't hurt anyone."

"And you are certain of this because…"

"Because I am just like Angel and Spike were before the big battle with Wolfram and Hart. Just with a little…twist." Jasmine said.

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	6. The Real Danger

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER FIVE

Kate stopped and looked very puzzled. "But I thought…" Kate said trailing off.

Angel knew that things were about to get very complicated and he was probably going to have to explain every thing to Sara and Emily. "Well, Kate, you see, Jasmine had a sister. A twin sister actually. When I went back to Ireland, I found Jasmine and…" Angel just sighed knowing that there was no use in trying to hide the truth any longer. He was just going to have to explain Jasmine to Kate and then explain all about vampires and demons to Sara and Emily. "…and I turned her. After she awoke she insisted that I turn her sister, Katelyn, as well. I did it to appease her. After many, many years, Jasmine and Katelyn had made a name for themselves as the one of the best hunters and killers in all of Europe. While on orders from the Master, they went after a sorcerer and, I guess you can say they lost. Katelyn was given a soul while Jasmine remained her normal, evil self. The point was to split them up forever. Katelyn refused to kill after that but Jasmine still, or course, wanted to. In the end Jasmine couldn't stand the thought of eternity without her twin by her side so Jasmine and Katelyn had Jasmine ensouled as well. This happened after my stint in Romania and they came looking for me. They couldn't find me so they wandered Europe for a while until Katelyn was killed by the Master's men."

As Angel had been telling his story, Sara and Emily sat in complete silence not knowing what to think. Here was their Angel, the one they thought they knew and he was talking about vampires, and gaining and losing souls and all sorts of crazy things. Sara realized, at that moment, that she didn't know Angel at all. Kate seemed to understand and simply nodded her head in acceptance.

"Um, Angel. I don't understand." Sara said.

"I am sorry Sara. I didn't want you to find this out about me. You see, I used to be a vampire. Was for over 200 years. Then I went to Romania and was given a soul. And after about 50 years of having that I, as well as a vampire I had turned named Spike, who also had a soul but only for about 2 years, became human." Angel said trying to explain as quickly as possible. "I know you don't understand and are very confused right now. And I will explain it better in due time. But right now, the killer me and Kate are after could come after you at any moment. His name is Penn and he, too, is a vampire. I created him, made him the monster that he is now. But a few years ago he was in LA and Kate killed him. Wolfram and Hart must have brought him back to life, but this time as a vampire."

"I…I…" Sara didn't know what to say. Emily was sitting next to her mother in complete shock.

"I don't mean to make things worse but, like I said before," Jasmine interjected, "it's not Penn and Wolfram and Hart that we have to worry about now."

"What do you mean?" Angel asked.

"When they brought Penn back, they simply did it to see if they could bring a vampire back as a vampire. I had heard that they had tried with Darla but she came back human. Well they succeeded with Penn. They figured that if they were going to try and bring back a vampire, they might as well bring one back that would bother you. But that wasn't their real goal, never has been. You see, who they really wanted, and who they now have…is Heinrich Nest, the old Master of the Order of Aurellius." Jasmine said watching everyone's reaction.

Kate just looked confused. She knew a little about the Order of Aurellius from when she had researched Angel when she first learned he was a vampire. But she didn't know much about the Master. Angel, on the other hand, looked terrified. When Angel was a vampire, the Master wouldn't have been much of a problem. He knew that if his strength was at 100% that he could take on the Master. The only reason he didn't in Sunnydale was because, at the time, he was way too weak to take on anybody. In all reality, he had a very hard time fighting Darla, who he could have beaten easily before he got his soul. But now that he was human, he knew that he was no match for the Master. Even though he still had his strength and his speed, he didn't have the demon in him to give him his real strength.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Angel asked.

"100% sure. They even brought back Luke, the Master's right hand man. Oh, and some old lawyers: Lindsay McDonald and Lilah Morgan." Jasmine responded.

"Ok, I can't take this." Sara said getting up and motioning for Emily to do the same. "Me and Emily are leaving this hotel. We are going to pack are things and we are going to go stay at a friend's until we can get a place of our own. You have gone absolutely insane Angel. Talking about vampires, and evil law firms, and bringing people back from the dead. You all have completely lost it. And you, Angel, if somehow this is all true, have been lying to us for a long, long time and I will not stand for it. Its over Angel. Me and Emily are leaving, now!"

"Sara please, I don't have time to explain it well but I promise you I will."

"No, Angel. We are gone."

And with that, Sara and Emily went to their rooms, packed up the necessities and left the Hyperion Hotel.

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	7. The Plan

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER SIX

Angel watched Sara and Emily go. They were supposed to be his future, a future that did not consist of anything demonic or apocalyptic in nature. But now, that future was gone and he couldn't dwell on that sad fact. He had a major problem to deal with and he didn't even know where to begin.

"So…what do we do now Angel?" Kate asked knowing that talking about Sara and Emily would have to wait.

"I don't know. I think the first thing we need to do is find Penn." Angel answered.

"Why would we want to do that?" Kate wondered.

"Because," Jasmine said stepping in. "Penn was brought back first. He knows where Wolfram and Hart is, he probably knows where they are keeping the Master, and he might even know what their plan is. We find Penn, we get answers."

"I highly doubt that Penn will give us anything though. Especially after what happened last time we met." Kate told her.

"Well, we have two things working for us when it comes to Penn." Angel said. "First, we have a common enemy. Penn hates the Master just as much as I do, and I really hate that man. Secondly, we have her." Angel proclaimed pointing to Jasmine.

"Will Penn talk to you?" Kate asked Jasmine hopefully.

"I think he will. I may have went out and gotten a soul and stopped doing that whole mass murdering thing, but I never honestly discouraged the others from continuing with their way of life. Getting a soul was a choice that I made so I could stay with my sister. Penn didn't understand that decision fully but he accepted it, especially because I didn't shun them afterwards. Yes me and Katelyn couldn't live with them any more, but it never stopped us from staying in contact, from staying friends. If that's what it could be called. He trusts me, always has. But first, we have to find him." Jasmine told her.

"We will have to be careful. Wolfram and Hart, as well as the Master, will anticipate us going after Penn. And they probably already know that you are here Jasmine so we won't just be able to send you to get him. We will have to come up with a really good plan." Angel informed them.

"What if…" Kate started.

"What if what?"

"What if we make Penn, come to us. I honestly don't think they will be expecting that." Kate finished.

"You're right I don't think they will be either. Know how do we get him to come to us?" Angel wondered.

"I know how to do that." Jasmine stated proudly.

"How?" Angel and Kate said.

"We call him. Wolfram and Hart had to have some form of contacting him when they first brought him back, when they thought they could control him. So, somewhere, Wolfram and Hart probably have an address or a phone number. It wouldn't be that hard to hack into their system and try and find it." Jasmine said.

"Sounds like a good plan to me." "Me too."

"Ok, I am going to go down to the precinct and try to get the case completely shifted over to you. That way no other officers will be involved, which means less casualties." Kate said picking up her bag and heading out.

"Where are your weapons?" Jasmine asked looking around.

"A little bit of every where. There are some in that cabinet by the wall, there are some in a chest in my room upstairs, room 212, and there are a bunch in room 220 hanging on the walls. Get as many as you can and get them ready. We will need as much as we can." Angel told her.

With Kate trying to keep the police out of the situation and Jasmine getting weapons ready for a battle, Angel hopped on the computer to try and get into Wolfram & Hart's system.

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	8. Remembering

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine is mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER SEVEN

It didn't take long for Jasmine to find the weapons, or to gather them and bring them all downstairs. She had found a couple of bags that were perfect for carrying weapons and brought most of them down in two trips. While she was getting all of the weapons out of the cabinet against the wall, she noticed a wooden box sitting at the bottom of it. She picked it up, took it over to the couch and opened it. Inside, and wrapped in cloth, was a dagger. It had a red and black handle with a picture of a jasmine flower on it and the blade, still sharp, had an inscription written on it in Gaelic. Jasmine picked it up and held it in her hand. She couldn't believe it. Angel had given it to her decades ago as a present. She thought that she had lost it long ago. Jasmine was staring at the dagger so intently that she hadn't even noticed that Angel was now standing behind her until he spoke.

"I remember when I gave you that dagger. You had just killed the master of another vampire clan. I was so proud of you." Angel said coming around the couch and sitting down.

"I remember when you gave it to me. Darla was pissed." Jasmine said looking up at him and laughing a bit.

Angel looked at the dagger and read aloud just as it was written, in Gaelic, then again in English, "Princess Jasmine, killer of Masters."

"I was never really a princess you know. Although you always called me one. Why?" Jasmine asked.

"Because you were to me."

"You know, I think about all that time we spent together in Ireland as humans. Our families would have never approved. Mine because they thought you were below me, and yours because they didn't want you to ruin my name, even if I did have a lot of money. But you were changing Angel, changing for me. Well, that is until my father had me marry that awful man. You know, I said 'No' while I was standing on that alter, and my father yelled that I did. The priest looked at my father, looked at me, and then said 'I know pronounce you man and wife.' The priest didn't even care that I didn't want to marry him." Jasmine said looking away from Angel.

"You know I would have done anything for you."

"I know you would have."

**FLASHBACK/HISTORY—IRELAND, 1700's**

Jasmine and Angel, known back then as Allison and Liam, were ridding their horses along a stretch of woods that surrounded Allison's home. It was very late at night and everyone was asleep. They were not supposed to be seeing each other, but they didn't care. Their families hated each other and did not want them to be anywhere near each other. But, of course, they didn't care. They had been sneaking out to see each other for over 5 months and no one even knew. Liam, who used to be a habitual drinker, had not been drunk in a long time. He still played the part every morning so that his father wouldn't suspect a thing. He figured it was the best way to keep his father out of his way. Allison had always been one to sneak out so, on rare occasions, she let herself get caught sneaking back into her home. Even though it got her into a lot of trouble, her father and mother had never found a way of keeping her locked in. She did this so that her parents, too, would not find out. They tried to keep things business as usual.

Allison slowed down her horse to a walk and Liam followed suit with his.

"Where are we going?" Liam asked Allison.

"To my favorite place in all of Ireland. It's my own, personal bit of Earth. My parents allowed me to have a small place to plant a garden anywhere I wanted on our land. So, I picked the corner furthest away from the house. I have looked through every window and you can not see this place in any single one of them because of the trees and the hills. It is like my own little bit of heaven. And I want to show it to you."

"You brought me all this way because you wanted to show me your garden?"

"No! Well, yes I guess. But it is an interesting garden."

"And why is that?" Angel said as they neared the greenhouse and dismounted.

"Because, there is only one type of flower growing in here." Allison said pushing open the doors and stepping in. "Only Jasmine grows here. This type of flower isn't native to this part of Ireland did you know? These are imported."

"They are beautiful." Liam said putting his arms around her and kissing her on her neck. "But not as beautiful as you."

Allison smiled and turned to face him. The door had shut behind them and it seemed as if it was just the two of them in the entire world. Allison stood on her tip-toes and kissed Liam passionately. Liam kissed her back and pulled her in tight to him. When the kiss was over, Liam led Allison over to where a small marble bench was placed and sat her down on it.

"Allison," Angel said, "I have a question to ask you."

"What is it?" Allison replied curiously.

Angel pulled out a ring from his pocket and held it up to her. "Will you be mine forever?"

Allison didn't know what to say at first. She was absolutely shocked. But she loved Liam more than anything in the world, and she threw her arms around him and practically screamed her acceptance. That night, they made love in Allison's greenhouse until the sun rose and they both had to return home. Liam gave Allison a chain on which to hold the ring until the time came that they were going to leave their little town and get married and never look back. They would only take a few possessions and ask Katelyn, Allison's sister, to join them.

Things of course did not turn out that way. Allison was caught sneaking back into the house, this time by complete accident, and was informed that she would be marrying the man that her father had chosen for her, that night. Allison hadn't had a chance to get word to Liam about the event, nor did she have time to run away because she was always in the company of either her mother or her father. The wedding had gone on just as her parents had planned. The day after the wedding, Liam had gone to the pub, gotten completely drunk and ran into Darla. Liam became Angelus that night. Nine months later, Allison had given birth to a healthy son. No one noticed that he looked nothing like her husband, and everything like her lover, Liam. Nor did any one notice that she had named her son Jason, Liam's middle name. 3 ½ years later, Angelus went back to his old town, with Penn in tow, and had run into Allison one late night. She of course thought it was a miracle that he was there and told him all about his son; and that her husband had killed him because he had found out that the boy was not his. So, Angelus had turned Allison that night because she was practically begging him to take her with him, and she became Jasmine. The rest, was history.

**END OF FLASHBACK/HISTORY**

Jasmine and Angel sat in complete silence for a few moments. Then Angel stood up and grabbed Jasmine's hand and pulled her up as well.

"Where are we going? Shouldn't we be looking for Penn and calling to check in on Kate?" Jasmine asked as he led her to a set of glass doors.

"We will get back to that in a second. First I want to show you something." Angel opened the doors, and this time it was Jasmine's turn to let her jaw drop. On the other side of the doors was a garden full of all kinds of flowers, but mostly jasmine.

"They're imported." Angel said to Jasmine.

Jasmine just started laughing. It was the only thing she could do. Then she turned around and kissed him. Angel kissed her back and they continued for a few moments. When the kissing finally ended, they both decided they would talk more later on and that it was time to get back to work. Angel had had no luck getting into W&H's mainframe so Jasmine decided that she would give it a try. An hour later Kate came back with a triumphant smile on her face and told them both that she had got the local PD off of the case. Jasmine turned from her spot at the computer and informed them that they must be having a lucky day because she had found a way to reach Penn. All were very happy that their plan was going well so far. Angel and Jasmine stared at each other for a moment, and then all went into the lobby to continue on with their plan.

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	9. Revelations

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters in this story, Joss Whedon owns them all. Jasmine, Sara, and Emily are mine though!!!!

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CHAPTER 7

Angel, Kate and Jasmine sat on the sofa in the middle of the lobby trying to formulate a plan that wouldn't get them all killed. They figured the best course of action was for Jasmine to call Penn and have him meet her somewhere other than the hotel. Angel and Kate would be waiting for him to arrive, would tranquilize him, bring him back to the hotel, and then put him in the cage that was still in the basement of the Hyperion Hotel. They all knew there was the possibility that Wolfram and Hart would be monitoring Penn and the plan would get shot to hell, but it was a chance they would have to take.

Just as they were getting up and getting ready to leave, the door to the lobby swung open and Sara and Emily walked through the door. Angel just stood there, not knowing what to do or say. Kate immediately became very fascinated with the pattern on the floor, and Jasmine continued to walk over to where she had placed the weapons she had gathered earlier.

"Hi Angel." Sara said walking down the stairs towards him.

"Sara, what are you doing back? I though you and Emily had left for good."

"Me and Emily talked about it and Emily kept telling me that we should not have left and we should let you really explain yourself. I realized that, you were either crazy and we needed to call the people in white coats. Or that you were telling the truth, and we understand why you lied. Emily really stood up for you by the way."

Angel looked at her very skeptically. "Ok, so we don't exactly understand what is going on but if you were a vampire, and are now human and good and help people, we understand why you wouldn't want any one knowing about the fact that you used to kill people. I have known you for a while Angel and, if you were not this changed man before me, you would have already killed both me and Emily. If these people are really as dangerous as you say they are, then me and Emily are safer if you know exactly where we are. Just because we wouldn't have been living here, doesn't mean that they wouldn't still come after us." Sara explained to him.

"I am glad you came back. And you are right, it is safer here. I don't know what I was thinking asking you to leave, it was stupid of me. Here you are safe…or will be once we get the sanctuary spell back up and running."

"Sanctuary spell?" Emily asked.

"Yea," Kate said, "it's a spell that makes it so there can be no violence what-so-ever. No fighting, no bombs, no shooting. Nothing at all. The only problem is its really hard to do."

"No its not. I could do it easy." Emily beamed.

Every one stared in shock at Emily. They couldn't believe what they had just heard. Emily could do a spell?! The only one that wasn't surprised was Jasmine.

"I knew there was something different about you when I came in earlier. You are a full-fledged witch, aren't you?" Jasmine asked.

"Yes I am, and have been since I got out of middle school. Melinda's older sister is a witch and we stumbled in on her doing a small spell once. We blackmailed her into teaching us. Said that if she didn't we would steal all her stuff and show it to her parents. Me and Melinda were really fast learners." Emily said trying not to look at her mother.

"You mean to tell me that you have known all about this!?!" Sara said practically yelling at her daughter.

"I knew that vampires existed, and there were big bad forces of darkness, but I didn't know Angel used to be a vampire. Me and Melinda never really looked into stuff like that. We basically stuck to magic. Sorry I didn't say anything before Angel, but mom was already mad and, well, I kinda didn't want her mad at me too."

Angel just laughed and walked over to Emily. "I understand Em. Trust me, I do." He gave her a little hug and then stepped back and looked at Jasmine. "So, want to help Emily set up the spell before we head out?"

"Yea sure. Doing a little magic is always fun!" Jasmine said.

"So wait, you are a vampire and a witch?" Emily asked.

"I wouldn't say straight up witch, but I have been known to dabble a bit."

"Cool."

Emily and Jasmine walked off to search the hotel for the supplies they would need, leaving Kate, Sara and Angel alone in the lobby.

"So," Sara asked, "what's the plan to catch the bad guys?"

"Well, we find Penn, bring him back here, get all the information we need out of him, and then figure out where to go from there." Kate told her.

"You know, as head chef of the restaurant that Wolfram & Hart are going to be at, I have all the contact information from them. Maybe we could use that to figure out where the individual lawyers live."

"That sounds great Sara. I am glad you are willing to help. This is going to be very dangerous and I want you to be on your guard at all times. We will figure out how to make the restaurant safe for tomorrow. In the meantime, let's get ready to go get Penn." Angel said leading Kate and Sara to the weapons cabinet to get the tranquilizer guns. Everything was looking up…well as up as it could be at the moment… and they hoped that all would go according to plan.

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